Hello there! My name is HottieNanako, or Kelly if you're a "normie". I first started attending conventions in 2002 with A-kon in Dallas. My first 2 costumes were made by my boyfriend's mom. In 2004, I started making my own costumes, starting with Rikku from Final Fantasy X-2. The next year was when I really caught the convention bug and started going to several each year. Now, I go to about 4 or 5 cons every year, plus many non-convention cosplay events.

I am a member of the Texas Metroplex Cosplay Coalition, a group of DFW-based cosplayers and photographers that enjoy helping each other on cosplay projects and wearing our costumes together. We hold sewing meets and cosplay classes as well as just fun activities like ice skating, bowling, and picnics. We also have regular photoshoots with our very talented photographers so we can get amazing pictures of the costumes we work so hard on. Not only has this group been a great help to my cosplaying, they're some of the best friends I've ever had.

When I'm not pinning, cutting, sewing, gluing, or crafting, I enjoy playing video games, particularly World of Warcraft. I also enjoy Fable 2, The Sims, Prince of Persia, Katamari Damacy, Phoenix Wright, Guitar Hero, and some old school games like Super Mario Bros, Donkey Kong Country, and Bust a Move. When I can actually pry myself away from cosplaying and gaming, I also try to spend some time writing anime/cosplay/gaming articles and learning Japanese for my as-of-yet-unscheduled trip to Japan someday.